Jackson football Game of the Week: Michigan Center wants to see where it stands against defending Cascades Conference champion Grass Lake

.Michigan Center varsity football players practice outside Michigan Center High School Wednesday afternoon. The Cardinals will take on Grass Lake this Friday in the Game of the Week. (Mike Mulholland | Mlive.com)

.Grass Lake varsity football players practice outside Grass Lake High School Wednesday afternoon. The Warriors will take on Michigan Center this Friday in the Game of the Week. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

MICHIGAN CENTER, MI — The Michigan Center High School football team is getting out the measuring stick.

With defending Cascades Conference champion Grass Lake coming to town Friday for a meeting between the league’s remaining unbeaten teams, the Cardinals want to find out if they are ready to play with the conference’s big boys.

“We knew coming into the season they were going to be the team (to beat),” Michigan Center coach Troy Allen said. “We’re going to try to win the game, but, when it’s all said and done, this is going to give us a great idea of where we fit in the whole scheme of things within the conference and that’s what we’re looking at.”

Both teams enter Friday night’s Game of the Week at 2-0 overall and 1-0 in the conference. Michigan Center shut out Parma Western 49-0 in the opening week of the season before holding on to a 39-34 win over Vandercook Lake last week.

Allen said his team is going to have to play more like it did in Week 1 than it did last week to beat Grass Lake.

“We just weren’t doing a lot of the things we did against Western that made us so successful, getting 10 guys to the ball, blocking 10 yards down field,” Allen said. “We got tired and started feeling sorry for ourselves and we’re not going to be able to get away with that like we did against Vandercook because we’re going to get all of that and more against Grass Lake.”

The Warriors, meanwhile, are riding a 13-game regular-season winning streak after defeating Dundee and Addison in the season’s opening weeks by combined scores of 78-13.

Grass Lake coach Randy Cole called the Cardinals’ option offense the best his team has seen thus far this season and preparing for it in practice is a challenge.

“It makes you play responsibility football on defense,” Cole said. “Everybody has a job to do, and they have to do it. It’s tough. We’re taking their plays in everything we’ve seen and trying to run them the best we can (in practice), but it’s tough because they work on it all the time and our kids are doing it for one week.”

Grass Lake could be without one of its major weapons. Frank Vuocolo, who ran for over 1,500 yards last season, hasn’t played since the first half of the opening game. While his status for Friday’s game is uncertain, the Warriors’ other backs know they’ll be expected to carry more of the load.

“It’s a big spot to fill. There’s always pressure having to fill your No. 1 guy’s spot,” junior running back Caleb Sabo said. “He’s dangerous. He’s fast, quick but he can also lower the shoulder and knock someone out. I’m not one to lower the shoulder. I’m usually the little guy trying to scamper around.”

While Grass Lake could be without its star running back, Michigan Center may have its own star emerging.

Senior Nate Poole has become one of the area’s leading rushers in the season’s early going. A week ago, Poole rushed for 193 yards and touchdown runs of 87, 75 and 12 yards on just seven carries. The week before, Poole ripped off a 54-yard touchdown run as he totaled 75 yards on just five carries.

“He’s the type of kid who, now that he’s found success, he’s running that much harder,” Allen said. “He’s just that much more confident, which is huge for us.”

A season ago, Grass Lake defeated Michigan Center 34-0 allowing the Cardinals just 112 yards of total offense while racking up 412 yards of its own. Cole says his team isn’t anticipating this year’s game being as easy.

“This year is totally different. Every team is different,” Cole said. “You can’t look into the history and say ‘We beat these guys’ or ‘They’ve beat us.’ It’s this year’s team playing their team from this year, and that’s all there is to it. Last year really doesn’t mean anything.”

Allen said the Cardinals’ biggest challenge is going to be surviving when Grass Lake gets momentum on its side.

“They wear you down and then demoralize you. They take advantage of when they have you down,” Allen said. “That’s the thing, how do your kids respond to that challenge? … Can we take a punch in the mouth and get up and give it back?”

IF YOU GO

WHO: Grass Lake (2-0, 1-0) at Michigan Center (2-0, 1-0)

WHAT: Football Game of the Week between Cascades Conference rivals

WHERE: Michigan Center High School

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday

Grass Lake (2-0, 1-0) at Michigan Center (2-0, 1-0)

Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday

The Lowdown: After two weeks, Grass Lake and Michigan Center are the last remaining Cascades Conference teams still unbeaten. Both teams make their living running the ball with sizable depth in the backfield, though each can also throw for yardage when it has to as well.

Key Matchup: Michigan Center rushing offense vs. Grass Lake rushing defense. A year ago, Michigan Center managed just 21 yards rushing against the Warriors. While first-year coach Troy Allen has installed a new, run-centric option offense to great success the first two weeks, gaining yards against the Warriors defense is difficult. Grass Lake has allowed just 150 yards in each of its opening two games. The Cardinals will have to do better than that to have a chance.

Prediction: Michigan Center is a vastly improved team from a season ago but has it improved enough to become the Cascades Conference’s elite? The Cardinals can prove just that Friday night, but until they do, the smart money is on the Warriors. Grass Lake 35, Michigan Center 20.